Pianoforte.



. No. 676,275.'v l Patented June u, |901. f H. s., P. A. 3. o. E. READING.

PIANOFORTE.

(Application led Sept. 7, 1900.)

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n. s., P. A. & o.

NOF() (Application tiled lSelm 7, 1900.)

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w/rA/Essfs A Tron/v5 ys 'l 4.UNITED STATES? PATENT OFFICE.

HERBERT SAMUEL READING, PERCY ARCHIBALD READING, AND OWEN ELOOME READING, OF TUNBRIDGE VELLS, ENGLAND.

PIAN OFO RTE.-

SPECIFICATON forming part of Letters Patent No. 676,275, dated J' une 1 1, 1901. Application filed September 7, 1900. Serial Nol 29,310. (No model.)

To a/ZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known thatwe, HERBERT SAMUEL READING, furniture dealer, PEROY ARCHI- BALD READING, pianoforte-tuner, and OWENY ELCOME READING,r manager of paper-mills,

residents of 18Albion road, Tunbridge Wells, in the county of Kent,'Englaud, have invented new and useful Improvements in Pianofortes, (for which applications forpatents have been filed in Great Britain, dated and numbered February 16,1900, No. 3,130, and

v July 4, 1900, No. 12,080, and in France August 18, 1900,) of which ,the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

Our invention relates to improvements in pianofortes, 1nv which asoundboard formed of a rolled or cast plate or sheet of alumini-v um or aluminium alloy is employed, so that the instrument is adapted to withstand the effects of a hot damp climate so prejudicial to the ordinary wooden soundboard; and our present invention has for its object to increase the resonance -or volume of sound, to

obtain a longer sustaining power,and to improve the quality ofthe tone, and generally to obtain other advantages in the construction of the instrument.

The invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, wherein-'- Figure 1 is a perspective view of the soundboard alone, arched or cambered, as hereinafter described, the degree of arching being exaggerated so as to render it apparent to the eye. Fig. 2 is a sectional side View of the bass end of the frame, showing the curvature of the illet on which the soundboard is fixed at that end. Figs. 3 and 4 are cross-sections on lines 3 3 4 4, Fig. 2, and on a larger scale. Fig. 5 shows detail views of the top fillet. Figs. 6 and 7 are a face view and cross-section of the fillet vat the treble end. Fig. 8 is a cross-section ofthe bent-side illet. Fig. 9 is a cross-section ofthe bridge-and back strap. Fig. 10 is a cross-section of the bridge with modified form of back strap.

The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in all the gures.

The soundboard is constituted by a rolled 5 or cast plate A, of aluminium or aluminitum alloy, about No,l 12 gage for a rolled (or yslightly thicker for a cast) plate.

The invention consists, primarily, in giving the plate or soundboard A an arched or .cambered form, the curve being in one direction only and being kuniform'throughoutthe plate, the eect of this single curvature or archingy of the plate in one direction only (in contradistinction to a dome like form, as usual) being to enable the ruse of belly-bars to be dispensed with. Suchbelly-bars have `hitherto been'a necessity in order to support the soundboard against thegdown-bearing of the strings; but in the 'case of an aluminium soundboard they' would have for effect to prejudice the sustaining qualities and `tone ofthe instrument, whereas by the arched formation above referred to the soundboard acquires sufficient strength to resist the downbearing of the strings without the aid of belly.- bars.

We find that an arched plate rising fivesixteenths of an inch from the iiat at the summit of the'arch gives good results with a plate of No. 12 gage; but a greater or lesser degree of curvature maybe used, according to circumstances. Thedirection of the arch y the'llets to which the soundboard is fixed would be curved in the direction Aof their length both at the bass end and at the treble end, while the other two fillets (the top and bottom llets in an upright instrument) would be flat, but the summit of the arch may extend diagonally from bass to treble, so as to coincide, approximately, in direction with the belly-bridge.

For a soundboard curved iu one direction only, as first mentioned, the curvature of the fillets at the bass end of the soundboard may be such as is shown in Figs. 2, 3, and 4, wherein B is the fillet, curved to a rise of about fivesixteenths of an inch (more or less) at the middle of its length, the fillet beingV about one inch broad.

(say to the extent of about one-sixteenth of IOO well as to insure that the soundboard A shall an inch,) so as to tend to throw the soundboard still lfartherforward, and so assist itv to resist the down-bearing f the strings, as

bear'hard upon the inner edge b of the fillet. The soundboard A is fixed to the illet by screws a at a pitch of about one and Vonefourth inches apart, screwed through the llet into the upright C of the frame behind, a layer D, of felt, blotting-paper, or other nonresonatingvmaterial,being interposed between theplate A and the fillet B, and a Washer d, of non-resonating material, being interposed between the screw-head and the plate. the side cheek of the case of the instrument. By comparing Figs.` 3 and 4: the rise of the lillet'and soundboard will b'e apparent.'

wrThe fillet F at the treble end (shown in Figs. .6 and 7) isA curved to a rise. ofroneeighth of an inch Vat the middle of its length above the mean height ofthe ends, the lower l endet the fillet being abouto'neeeighthof an inch hgherthan the upper end. Itis of the same width as and is also lbackwardly inclined to the same' extent as the bass-fillet, and the treble end of the souudboard is screwed to it, With the interposition of non-resonating material D, by screws a', as for the bass-fillet.

The bent-side illet G (shown in Fig. 8)V

has the same backward inclination as the others, and'it is about one inch broad and is curved inthe directionof its length to a rise similar to that ot' the corresponding opposite portion of` thev bass-fillet B, the v soundboard being screwed to it in the same way as to the others, with an intervening layer of non-resonating material D.

The backward inclinations of the bass-fillet B, the treble-fillet F, rand the bent-side fillet.

G in the direction of'their Width coact to strain,v the' soundboard 'when it is fixed lto those fillets, so as to. tend to throw it forward and to enable it the better to resist the downbea-ring pressure of the strings on the sound-A board4'bridg'e. The top fillet H is iat in the direction of its length, has the same backward inclination as the bass-iiNet, a-nd is preferably v vabout one and one-fourth inches wide at the bass end, diminishing to three-fourths of an inch at the treble end, as shown. This iillet is (iXedupon-bearers or cross-pieces fixed between the uprights O of the frame, and the soundboard is screwed thereto with intervening non-resonating material in the same wayas to the bass-fillet. The bottom illet, which is not shown, has a uniform Width of about one and onefourth'.incl 1es, is flat throughout its length, is backwardly inclined,

and thes'oundboard is screwed to it withintervening non-resonatin g material in the same way-as to the others. The backward inclination vof the top fillet H and of the bottom fillet is slightly in excess of that which would be required in order to conform tothe longitudinalcnr'vature of the bass-lillet, so that the backward inclination of the top and-bottom fillets will coact with that of the other yfillets Eisl ing of the strings.

to produce the desired' eect o board, as above mentioned.

It is of course to be understood that the top fillet H and the upper ends of the bass and treble fillets B F correspond in level and similarly with regard to the bottom fillet and the lower ends of the'bassfillet B and the bentside fillet G, and that 'the upper end of the bent-side fillet G and the lower end of the treble-fillet F also correspond. rlheV plate would in any ease preferably be rolled (or be otherwise made or brought) initially to a more curved or arched form thanthat of the fillets, so that'in forcing it down onto the fillets the plate will be `so strained as to cause it to tend to resist the down-bearing vof the strings, (which is preferably rather greater than usual,f) this tendency thus coacting Awith. they varched form to obtain the desired result.` The initial curvature so given to the pla-te is v equal to a rise of, say, three inches, more or' less.

. "The bridge l, Fig. 9, `may bemadeof Wood, as usual, or may be made of metal, and it is continuous, being merely notched where nec# n tiii'esound-v I essary to clear the bars of the metal lframe.- j

I t'is fixed tothe sound-board,in conjunctionV with a fillet or back strap J, (correspondingin shapeto that of the bridge,-) by screws i, passing through both, layers D Dl of blottingpaper orother no'n-resonating material inter- -vening between the soundboard andthe -adjacent surfaces of the bridge and back strap,

which surfaces are shaped to correspondto the arched form of the soundboard.v The Y bridge is made of greater depth than usu-al,

' (say about one and one-half inches in depth,)

so as in cooperation with the back strap to -more eiiicie'ntly stiften the soundboard and lenable it the better to resist the downbear- The back strap .T may befot wood and may :be graduated in depth-#that is to say', deeperl toward the middle of its length-so as tostill further strengthen or` rein-force the soundboard where required, or the back strap may be of channeled or other suitable cross-section and be made of metal, (say of cast-aluminium) as shown in Fig. 10, the iianges being deeper .toward the v'middle of the bar, so as to obtain increased st iness for the purpose of reinforcing the soundboard at that part.I

. The soundboard may vbe rolled, cast, or

where required to compensate for weakness at any particular part-say toward the center-F the extra thickness gradually merging in'to thenormal thickness of the plate. The plate, if cast, may have cast in one with it oneor more strengthening-ribs at back, which may 12o I otherwise made of slightly-greater thickness follow the direction of the bridge and servev also as the back strap for use in ixing' the, 'f'

bridge.

Having now particularly described and as;

certainedl the nature of the said-inventionand `in what manner the same is to be performed,

1...In a pianoforte, a soundboard formed of aplate of aluminium or aluminium alloy, arched or cambered in one direction only throughout, so that it will sustain the downbearing of thev strings without the use, of belly-bars, the summit of the arch extending from bass to treble transversely of the direction of the strings, and ,the soundboard being fixed upon fillets longitudinally curved to correspond to the intended curvature of the soundboard, as described.

2. In a pianoforte, a soundboard formed of a plate of aluminium or aluminium alloy, arched or cambered in one direction only throughout, so as to enable it to sustain the down-bearing of the strings without the use of belly-bars, the summit of the arch extending from bass to treble transversely of the direction of the strings, and the soundboard being fixed upon lillets longitudinally curved to correspond` to the intended curvature of the soundboard, the soundboard being initially curved to a more curved form than that ot the fillets so that it is strained when fixed theretovin such manner that it acquires a:

rarched orcambered form, the curve being in one direction only as described, of fillets backwardly inclined in the direction of their Width, sothat the soundboard when fixed thereon willorest upon the inner edge of the fillets and will beY subjected to leverage exerted on the margin of the soundboard by v `faces ofthe fillets so as to exert leverage thereon tending to cause the soundboard to assume a more forwardly-arched form, a y

bridge, and a back strap corresponding to the bridge in shape and position, the bridge and back strap being united with the soundboard between them, and having their surfaces adjacent to the soundboard shaped to conform to the arched form of the plate, so that the bridge and back strap will 'coact with the backwardly-inclined llets and means of fixing the plate thereon, in maintaining the arched form of the soundboard. Y

Dated the 27th of August, 1900.

HERBERT SAMUEL READING; BERCY ARCHIBALD READING; OWEN ELCOME READING.

I Vitnesses:

T. W. KENNARD,

C. G. CLARK. 

